Area of Invention
The present invention relates to a system, apparatus and method for the liquid cooling of an insulated or uninsulated vessel, such as a cooler, and maintaining foods and beverages therein at a suitable temperature, in which the source of liquid cooling is located externally of the chilling vessel.
Prior Art
A longstanding problem with coolers has been maintaining ice and water therein at a suitable temperature, over a period of time. The contents of the cooler are exposed to the general ambient atmospheric temperature thus, the ice therein will inevitably melt and the temperature of the remaining liquid, typically water, will rise to a level that will cause the food or beverages within the cooler to become unfit for human consumption or cause the food or beverages to lose their desired flavor, this typically occurs at temperatures above 34 degrees Fahrenheit. A parallel problem exists in the case of ice chests and ice tubs of the type typically used in commercial establishments, bars and restaurants, backyard picnics, catered events, theme parks, marine craft, and the like.
Similar problems are prevalent in an industrial context and in governmental and hospital food preparation/serving facilities, and military canteens.
A problem also often presents itself in the transportation of bags of ice to coolers. The mere transportation and maintenance of a sufficient quantity of ice necessary to keep food and beverages at a desired temperature presents various problems including time, labor, and the cost of energy needed to make and keep ice on hand. The present invention can also function as a means of maintaining packaged ice by storing the packaged ice in a special purpose container within the chilling vessel.
Conventional solutions to such issues appear in the art in several forms, however, they amount to nothing more than the incorporation of an evaporative heat exchanger into the chilling vessel or ice chest itself. In such solutions the refrigeration load of the food and beverages within the primary chilling vessel or cooler must be addressed by direct thermal transfer from the evaporator coils. Further, such a solution entails incremental energy and equipment costs that are impractical for backyard, marine, and outdoor venue applications.
The use of endothermic heat exchangers, often termed barrel chillers or evaporators, is known in the art. However, to the knowledge of the inventor, such use has primarily been an integral part of other industries and applications.
Regarding specific prior art, as is known to the inventor, no efforts have been made to employ more than one liquid coolant as part of a refrigerative cooling system which is external to a traditional refrigeration circuit, for the purpose of cooling foods, inclusive of beverages and is in direct contact with the items being cooled. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,949,552 (1990) to Adams teaches a cooling system which employs a chiller coil of glycol for the chilling of beverage lines of remotely dispensed beverages. Adams does not reflect the structure or purpose of the inventor's system and method. Adams' system is not intended for cooling packaged food or beverages and the cooling liquid is not in direct contact with the items being cooled. U.S. Pat. No. 5,743,108 (1998) to Cleland teaches a glycol chiller machine in which the glycol is chilled by a heat exchanger and is provided in the immediate proximity to liquid lines at a beverage dispensing location. Therein, glycol operates as the sole heat exchange medium and, as well, the system of Cleland is not applicable to general purpose food and beverage coolers as are typically used in a recreational or bottled beverage context. Cleland's system is not intended for cooling packaged food or beverages and the cooling liquid is not in direct contact with the items being cooled. U.S. Pat. No. 6,722,147 (2004) to Heyl teaches the use of a glycol/refrigerant heat exchanger in a motor vehicle context and, as such, is intended to enhance the operation of the auto's air conditioning and heating systems, given the low specific heat of glycol relative to water. The use of a glycol/refrigerant heat exchanger is thus able to enhance the efficiency of both the cooling and heating functions within a car. U.S. Pat. No. 7,231,778 (2007) to Rigney teaches a cooling system for a commercial aircraft galley and thereby addresses a persistent problem in catering upon aircraft, namely, that of providing sufficient thermal values, whether heating or cooling in character, to the serving cart on the aircraft which, after a period of time, tends to approach the ambient temperature of the passenger compartment in the absence of a continual input of thermal values at a desired temperature and the liquid is not in direct contact with the beverages. Rigney's system is intended for cooling packaged food or beverages but the cooling fluid is not in direct contact with the items being cooled.
PCT Publication WO 2007029074 to Guadalupi teaches a cooling system for beverages in which glycol is maintained as a separate heat exchange fluid from water and functions as a means by which the water may be maintained at a desired temperature by negative thermal values from a discrete glycol circuit. Guadalupi's system is not intended for cooling packaged food or beverages and the cooling fluid is not in direct contact with the items being cooled.
The present invention thereby provides an improvement in both function and efficiency over the art in the area of coolers, chilling vessels, food coolers, and combinations thereof.